1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to firearms, and more particularly, to bolt action repeating rifles.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
A great many types of bolt actions have been provided in repeating rifles in the last 100 years. The bolt action repeating rifle perhaps first began to achieve real prominence and popularity in the firearms field with the bolt actions developed by Paul Mauser in the 1860's. Since that time, a number of improvements and variations have been made in bolt actions to improve their reliability, the safety characteristic of rifles in which they are employed and the smoothness with which they may be operated in a rifle which can be accurately fired repetively for a number of times. It is important in bolt action rifles that the bolt, which normally operates with a reciprocating and a rotative movement, slides smoothly within the receiver of the rifle to seat freely and easily without binding or canting. It is also important that the construction of the action afford a high degree of safety to the shooter by having sufficient metal and geometric reinforcement of cooperating parts to prevent the firing recoil from driving the bolt back into the shooter's face as a result of failure of the back-up locking mechanisms. Many types of rifle bolts have, in the past, been provided with elongated lugs, rails or ribs which cooperate with locking lugs carried on the receiver at one or more places to lock the bolt in its firing status when the action is closed. In many of these constructions, however, the geometric array of the ribs or rails carried on the bolt is such that the bolt is not mechanically balanced and the forces developed during recoil, as well as the forces acting on the bolt as it is reciprocated from an open breech to a closed position tend to distort the bolt, or cause it to bind up in the receiver.
Another problem not infrequently encountered in bolt action rifles as they have been previously constructed is the tendency of the cartridge being fed from the magazine box to the chamber to bind or rub against the rails of the receiver, thus causing scoring or abrading of the case of the cartridge, and also reducing the smoothness with which the action is operated. Further, the same mechanical designs which cause the scoring of the brass shell cases (a feature which is particularly undesirable where it is desired to reload the cases) also sometimes results in a jam which, of course, interfers with the shooting of the rifle, and causes aggravating delays while the jam is cleared.
In some types of bolt action rifles, such as that described in my U.S. Pat. No. 3,494,216, the bolt release lug or lock which is provided for the purpose of allowing the bolt to be slipped out of the receiver for maintenance or repair or inspection of the receiver, or for various other purposes, is not as conveniently and readily accessible as would be optimum, and requires removal or manipulation of the trigger mechanism in order to actuate the bolt stop pin or release lug in a way to permit the bolt assembly to be completely removed from the receiver.
Finally, many of the types of bolt actions which have previously been provided in repeating rifles machine the bolt handle and bolt handle shroud integrally with the bolt, or at least the shroud itself is machined integrally with the bolt, with the result that on those occasions when it may be desirable to repair or alter the surfaces on the bolt handle shroud or to disconnect, for any reason, the bolt handle and bolt handle shroud from the bolt proper, this is a very difficult operation and generally requires replacement of the entire bolt, bolt handle shroud and bolt handle.